The present invention relates to bulk forming laxative products. These are typically based on psyllium or an equivalent fibrous vegetable material
Such products typically include sugar which facilitates dispersion of the fibrous vegetable material in water so that it can be consumed. However, dispersion is a serious problem in sugar-free fibrous vegetable bulking products. The fibrous material simply does not disperse adequately in water.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,321,263 to Powell et al, issued Mar. 23, 1982 and entitled "PSYLLIUM COMPOSITIONS," wets the psyllium with a minimum of 2% of either polyethylene glycol or polyvinypyrrolidone and alleges that the resulting psyllium composition is substantially instantly dispersible in water. The patent indicates that other polymeric materials such as hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (Methocel E-15.TM.), carboxyvinyl polymer (Carbopol.TM.), polyoxyethylene/polyoxypropylene block copolymer (Pluronic F-68.TM.) and polyvinylmethylmethacrylate (Gantrez-AN119.TM.) do not facilitate dispersion of psyllium. Powell teaches that psyllium coated with hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, where the coating comprises 1% of the composition, requires 90 seconds to wet and disperse and at 2% requires 120 seconds to wet and disperse.